GRC Blog

Welcome to the GRC Recorders pages. This blog provides details on all the relevant news of Glamorgan’s scarcer birds, plus all BBRC & WRP decisions that affect us locally. It will also be used to document the status and occurrence of these scarcer species and we welcome contributions from anyone with photographs, artwork or documentation of rarities past, present and future. The GRC also welcomes all seawatching news from around Glamorgan and news of passage migrants in spring & autumn, uncommon birds in our area and unusual behaviour.

All visitors are welcome. You must first register by sending an email to GlamRC@gmail.com before you can contribute. An invite will be sent to your email address. Blog content will be strictly moderated. Access to pages and downloads are available to everyone. All photographs on this blog remain the property of the originator. If you would like to use photos, please arrange permission beforehand.

The Glamorgan Rarities Committee, in conjunction with the Glamorgan Bird Club & Gower Wildlife , have agreed to co-operate with the Welsh Ornithological Society in the sharing of bird records & photographs in the interest of keeping accurate records and to promote birdwatching in North, Mid & South Wales.

A Black-necked Grebe was found in Cardiff Bay [Penarth Marina/River Ely] and was last seen flying towards the Taff at the Grangetown flyover. [PD & GP]
A Firecrest was in the north pool bushes near the hide at Kenfig NNR. [ND]

Saturday, 22 November 2014

A Water Pipit was on the lower Ogmore Estuary this morning. Not unusually it saw me before I saw it, flying off over the river and into a tree on the edge of the dunes, where it gave prolonged - if distant - views as it preened. A Bar-tailed Godwit (that thinks it's a Redshank) remains, unexpected here this time of year.

Tuesday, 18 November 2014

A Red-throated Diver was swimming fairly close to the beach at Crymlyn Burrows, this afternoon. Certainly much closer in than I've seen before, and this resulted in me dashing to the waters edge to get a record shot of it. A close in Kittiwake also passed the beach, which is also fairly unusual.
Otherwise on the sea 4 female Common Scoters, a drake Wigeon and 5 Guillemots (plus lots of distant Auk sp on the sea and in flight). The Great Crested Grebes are now 213+ on the Crymlyn Burrows side of Baglan Bay, with c100 off Aberavon Beach. However, conditions were a bit choppy and there are probably more out there.

Sunday, 16 November 2014

Here's a record shot - taken by David Ripley - of the male Snow Bunting present on the cliffs at Southerndown, late afternoon. This stretch of the coast has a good track record for the species, certainly by our meagre standards!